Owlskip Games, led by former ZA/UM developer Tim Sheinman, has launched The Ratline on Steam. Set in 1971, the game has players act as a private detective tracing escaped Nazi war criminals living under assumed identities. It emphasizes piecing together clues from documents and phone calls on a virtual pinboard.
Owlskip Games, primarily made up of Tim Sheinman—a former developer at ZA/UM—has released The Ratline today on Steam for $11.99. Sheinman previously created investigative titles such as Family, Rivals, and Riley & Rochelle, which involved analyzing documents, archives, and personal items to solve mysteries and build timelines. The Ratline continues this style, predating 2025's The Roottrees Are Dead in the genre of document-based detective work. Named after the post-World War II escape routes used by Nazis and collaborators, the game is set in 1971. Players take on the role of a private detective hired by a mysterious figure to track senior Nazi regime members now posing as dentists, wine merchants, or even South American police officials. Gameplay centers on a pinboard above a desk equipped with a telephone, rolodex, and radio. Players sift through photographs, business cards, private letters, and other documents, conduct research, make phone calls, and use a keyword-search machine to uncover real names and locations. Completing each chapter's case advances the story. The review notes some quirks, such as the anachronistic search tool and instant delivery of photos and documents via phone, which strain believability but are accepted after initial cases. Cracking puzzles proves satisfying, as in Chapter 5 (The Case of the Sunburnt Nazi), where a Spanish CIA document provided a breakthrough. A hint system offers nudges, and searching prior cases in the Evidence Journal aids progress. Players can pet a persistent puppy on the desk, though its placement draws minor critique. Despite scrappiness, the game encourages note-taking, musing over clues, and even external research for inspiration, fostering a deliberate pace.